SH Blog: Heat looking to make a run at adding Carmelo Anthony, Stoudemire calls out young teammates

There have been plenty of speculation on whether the “Big Three” in Miami will remain intact beyond this season.

LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh all have the ability to exercise an early termination option for next season to become unrestricted free agents. What they decide may depend largely on what happens in the Finals against the San Antonio Spurs, but there is another plan possibly in play.

Make it the “Big Four” by bringing in Carmelo Anthony.

It almost sounds crazy, but the idea is apparently not a blind rumor, according to Brian Windhorst and Marc Stein of ESPN:

Sources told ESPN.com that Heat officials and the team’s leading players have already started to explore their options for creating sufficient financial flexibility to make an ambitious run at adding New York Knicks scoring machine Carmelo Anthony this summer in free agency.

The mere concept would require the star trio of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh to all opt out of their current contracts by the end of the month and likely take further salary reductions in new deals that start next season to give Miami the ability to offer Anthony a representative first-year salary. The Heat also are prevented from making any formal contact with Anthony until July 1 and can do so then only if he opts out of the final year of his current contract. Anthony has until June 23 to notify the Knicks of his intentions, according to sources.

But the success of the Heat’s 2010 free-agent bonanza has established them as the NBA’s undisputed destination franchise, with owner Micky Arison empowering big-thinking team president Pat Riley to attempt to pull off another coup in the market despite new collective bargaining agreement rules aimed at preventing it.

Would James, the best player on the planet, be willing to take a pay-cut once again in an attempt to win more championships despite already having taken a discount from his previous contract? Thanks to his off-court investments, he may actually be less concerned about it than most would think. More from Windhorst and Stein:

Sources say internal conversations within the Heat organization about pursuing this course have run concurrently with Miami’s bid to win a third consecutive championship, with sources adding that James in particular is likely to try to recoup potential salary sacrificed through fresh off-court business opportunities if the Heat’s new dream scenario does come to fruition.

James’ off-court business is booming, thanks to a string of investments paying off massively and the prospect of new opportunities in endorsements and entertainment projects promising to expand his wealth significantly in coming years.

In a recent example, while James was leading the Heat to a victory over the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference finals, sources say the 29-year-old was finalizing what is believed to be the biggest equity cash payout for a professional athlete in history as part of Apple’s recent $3 billion purchase of Beats Electronics. Sources briefed on the situation say James realized a profit of more than $30 million in cash and stock in the Beats sale after he had struck a deal to get a small stake in the company at its inception in 2008 in exchange for promoting its high-end headphones.

Aside from the financial aspect, James actually likes the idea of being paired with Anthony:

James feels he needs to reduce his workload during the regular season, especially with Wade at a point in his career where knee problems are limiting him to fewer games. Wade missed 28 games during the regular season as part of a maintenance program aimed at keeping him as fresh as possible for the playoffs.

Pairing with Anthony, his close friend and a player who sports a similar skill set, is attractive to James. Anthony and the Heat’s three stars have maintained a good relationship since they entered the league together in the 2003 draft class. There is a strong belief that the team concept Miami has forged since 2010 would allow them to learn to be effective all playing together.

Bosh has already stated in recent weeks that he would be willing to settle for a smaller pay to remain with the Heat, and it’s within reason to believe that Wade may be right behind him, given his knee issues and knowing he has the luxury of sitting out a number of regular season games to prepare himself for the playoffs. So the big question is, would Anthony be willing to compromise millions of dollars as well as the guarantee of being the go-to man in an offense to try to win a championship with James and company? It sounds highly unlikely, but may not be out of the question should both players decide to opt in for the upcoming season, according to Stephen A. Smith.

Anthony will have until June 23 to decide whether he wants to opt in or out with the New York Knicks, and is being advised by Phil Jackson to stay put because he has plans of his own, from Stein:

Sources told ESPN.com that Knicks president Phil Jackson is continuing to urge Anthony to exercise next season’s $23.3 million player option and put off unrestricted free agency for one more year.

The Chicago Bulls, Houston Rockets and Dallas Mavericks are all teams Anthony would consider starting July 1, sources say, if the 30-year-old decides to become a free agent this summer.

Jackson’s pitch to Anthony — which sources say he has delivered more than once over the past month — is founded upon the notion that the Knicks will have increased financial flexibility in the summer of 2015 to bring in a marquee free agent to pair with a re-signed Anthony.

Miami’s LeBron James, provided he also decides to opt in later this month and put off free agency for a year, is among the targets the Knicks are telling Anthony they intend to pursue in the summer of 2015.

Derek Fisher – New York’s newest head coach – undoubtedly wants Anthony to remain with the team and feels more positively about the Knicks than most, from Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN:

“We played against each other for years,” Fisher said. “He is one of the great ones. In due time, I will continue to speak with all of our players, not just Carmelo. But there won’t be any hesitation to let him know that I’m excited about the opportunity to possibly work with him.

“But it will be his choice. As the head coach, I have to be prepared to coach the players we ultimately have. I would love the opportunity to work closely with Carmelo. I look forward to it and we will see if it can happen.”

[…]

“I’m not as down on the roster and the team as some of you in the room are,” Fisher said to reporters at his press conference. “I think there are some things that we can do with this team that can be special right now, not years from now.

“(Anthony) wants to be on a great team. He wants to be around great people that want to achieve greatness. He’s great and he deserves that, and so that’s what we want to create with him and hopefully we can do it.”

Speaking of Fisher, Amare Stoudemire will play at least one year for the coach (provided he doesn’t get traded) and is looking forward to some much-needed leadership and discipline from the Phil Jackson disciple, by Will Sammon of Newsday:

“For the young players who are not as professional as they should be, I will look for him to put his foot down and really be firm about his teaching strategy and even for veteran players who don’t want to buy into it, you got to put your foot down,” Stoudemire said Tuesday in Manhattan where he signed copies of his new book, “Cooking With Amar’e: 100 Easy Recipes for Pros & Rookies in the Kitchen.”

“I think with Phil having his back, that gives him more of a role of sort of being a disciplinarian,” Stoudemire said. “Whatever Phil thinks works, I’m all with them and on board with it. Phil has a pedigree of winning and if he feels that’s what’s needed to win, then I’m down for it.”

Clearly, Stoudemire was less than pleased with some of the characters in his locker room over the past season. The question now is, can Fisher truly inspire the players and discipline them when things go south as a rookie coach? According to some insiders of the Oklahoma City Thunder, Fisher spoke a lot but not always with substance, from Marc Berman of New York Post:

Fisher’s speech-making skills are good for dreary lockout meetings and introductory press conferences. But this is what one Thunder insider told me during the conference finals:

“The thing that worries me about Derek as a coach is it’s one thing to give speeches as a player because it’s unique,” the source said. “But the players don’t want to hear long speeches from the coach every day during the season. Players may roll their eyes. Hopefully, Phil will guide him there.’’

One person close to Fisher says admiringly, “He has the ability to talk a lot but not really reveal anything.’’

It should be yet another intriguing season ahead for the Knicks.

OTHER NEWS FROM AROUND THE LEAGUE:

Hubie Brown gave a heartfelt speech about Jack Ramsay. Click here to watch.

Charles Barkley said on NBATV that some of the players he knows will look to boycott next season if Donald Sterling is still the owner of the Los Angeles Clippers.

The Heat are concerned about Mario Chalmers, and LeBron James is starting to wonder if he needs to come down hard on the point guard as he did in the past, from Ira Winderman of Sun Sentinel: “LeBron on Mario Chalmers: “He can’t lose confidence in himself . . . That’s one thing he can’t do.”… LeBron on Chalmers, “Maybe I need to get back on him, like I have in the past.”

Greg Oden has not made any impact on the Heat’s season, and admits that his performance is not what he had hoped it would be, from Chris Haynes of CSNNW: “Yeah, I’m sure I’m playing again next year but honestly I haven’t even gave it much thought,” Oden told CSNNW.com Wednesday after practice. “I’m trying to concentrate on this and getting this ring first and after that, that’s part of the thought process. My body feels good. I can still play. I’ll be alright.”… “It wasn’t what I was hoping it would be,” the big man said. “I would have definitely liked to have played more but you know, everything that I’ve been through, I’m just happy to be out there and being on a team. Last year I wasn’t and this year I’m on a team that possibly can win the championship. I’m happy in that, but personally, playing wise, I’m not as happy as I want to be.”

Some guy named Bobby Ramos of “Bottomline” made a real name for himself during postgame interviews after Game 3. Here’s the one where he managed to get a one-word answer out of Erik Spoelstra. And here is the one where he managed to get some laughs out of James and Wade.

Here’s your latest update on the Donald Sterling saga, from Ramona Shelburne of ESPN LA: “A Los Angeles County probate judge has scheduled a four-day trial for July 7-10 to determine whether Los Angeles Clippers co-owner Donald Sterling was properly removed as a trustee from the Sterling Family Trust, which agreed to sell the franchise to former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer on May 29 for a record $2 billion. The lawyers for Shelly Sterling, who assumed the role of sole trustee and negotiated the sale with Ballmer after two neurologists determined Donald Sterling was mentally incapacitated and no longer able to conduct his own legal and business affairs, requested an expedited hearing so that the sale could be approved by the NBA Board of Governors by July 15 and closed by September 15, as outlined in the purchase agreement. Both Ballmer and Shelly Sterling have agreed to a grace period that allows for board approval by September 15. Should the sale not be closed by September 15, Ballmer theoretically could pull out of the deal and the NBA would be forced to begin termination proceedings against Sterling again, then sell the team itself. However, sources say there is no indication Ballmer would do that.”